Drawing is often, though not always, the foundation of a painting.

If you want your painting to closely resemble your subject, you’ll sketch or draw it before you apply paint to paper.

Sketching refers to a loose, unfinished drawing meant to give you an idea of the placement and general shapes involved.

Drawing refers to a closer representation of your subject, with or without details.

The act of drawing sensitizes your hand/eye coordination and hones your ability to see what’s really before you.

Drawing is a way to develop “Sherlock Holmesian” superpowers of observation and discovery.

Whenever you learn anything, receptivity is a prerequisite.

Open to expanding your sense of self and your abilities.

When drawing or painting, slowing down and moving your awareness from head to heart is a great place to start.

As technology continues to speed up access to our world, we’ve been speeding up right along with it.

Consciously slowing your awareness when drawing and painting is a gift to yourself, and to those around you.

Grounding yourself with a few deep, cleansing breaths before you start your creative endeavor is a calming way to begin.

One of my college drawing instructors once said,

“You each have 100,000 bad drawings inside of you, the sooner you get them out onto paper, the sooner you’ll get to the good ones.”

It takes time to sharpen your drawing or painting skills.

It’s time well spent!

While doing so, you’ll be practicing a form of open-eyed, mindful meditation.

Drawing and painting are my favorite ways to meditate — actually, along with walking, they’re the only ways I meditate!

I bought my first cat for 99¢ at Maxwell Street Days when I was six.

 My family knew I wanted a cat. I’d been told that when “so-and-so’s” cat had kittens, I’d get one. I waited — f-o-r-e-v-e-r.

When I saw “Butterball” at the street fair, I  knew she was mine. 

It takes time for cats to have kittens and more time for kittens to be weaned. Time means nothing to a six-year-old.  

Time is Elastic.

Sometimes it “races,” other times, it “drags on.”   

The way you spend your time determines its elasticity. Maybe you experienced both dragging and speeding time this year. 

Life is still shifting, and there’s a lot to consider.

My first “Balancing Act” was painted in 2014 (clearly, this is an on-going quest.)

 While we coped with life under social lockdown, changes took place within and around us.

 As I begin to face the outside world again, I’m not sure I’m ready.

Are you ready?

How do you want to move forward in your life and career?
(Notice, life before career!)

What do you want it to look like? How do you want to feel?

What did you realize this past year that you didn’t know before?

Life is in constant flux. We’re constantly recalibrating and balancing.

Even when we’re standing still, balance keeps the ever-moving molecules of our body working in unison. Fortunately, our body keeps track of that.

It’s up to us to consciously balance the rest of life.

We now have the opportunity to consciously balance ourselves, our interactions with others, and our planet.

I’m not interested in moving in crazy circles just because I can. I’m looking for a better way to live, not a crazier one.

Let’s focus on what it is that we do want to create and move toward that.

Let’s notice results and base next actions upon desired results.

Copy. Paste. Repeat.

Mix water, one of the most subtle yet powerful forces of nature with color, one of the most distracting characteristics of nature, and prepare to be amazed!

Watercolor put wings on my self-expression in ways I would never have imagined.

Watercolor, when allowed the freedom it enjoys, reminds us to be curious and playful.

Watercolor is deceptively easy to play with — it's a child’s toy for goodness’ sake!

It’s the powerful strength of water mixed with the entertainment of color that makes Watercolor a playful friend and teacher. 

Watercolor is flexible.

Oh my! A walk through the Hawaii Watercolor Society exhibit at DAC on Nuuanu St in Honolulu will astonish you with the myriad ways it can be used!

When you were a child, you marveled at your masterpiece in fingerpaint for the joy you experienced in the process. Your mom probably put it on the fridge for all to appreciate.

Later, you received coloring books and were praised when you colored within the lines. You’d mastered a measure of dexterity, conformity, and control.

Little did you know then how hard you’d work to unlearn and unravel that controlling behavior later in life!

Watercolor has taught me the importance of being aware of my thoughts and actions — in real-time.

When painting with watercolor, it’s a good idea to watch the painting as it forms because you never know when the water might take that color into areas you hadn’t planned for it to go.

When you paint, focus on what you’re doing in the moment and you’ll become a more thoughtful person.

Over the years, focus and thoughtfulness have crept into all areas of my life. It took more time in some areas and relationships than others, and there’s more work to be done. Yet, all areas have felt the results of the multitude of tiny, thoughtful changes I’ve made while painting.

Would you like to see what happens when you mix water, one of the most subtle yet powerful forces of nature with color, one of the most distracting characteristics of nature?

Join Me for some FUN!

Anything can happen — including
a lifetime of painting adventures!

If you haven’t painted in years, Or if you’ve painted and want more guidance, FUN 1.0 will get you started and give you a strong foundation for moving forward.

If you want more regularity to your painting practice, and you’ve learned color theory in a class with me before, Fun 2.0 is the ticket.

The first time it happened, I was painting at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

As I lifted a loaded paintbrush to the painting on the easel, my hand suddenly went back to touch the paper towel.  

What?

I hadn’t decided to touch the paper towel, my hand simply did it.

Since that day, my hand often spontaneously releases excess water & paint — apparently, the brush is too full!

This kind of experience is one reason to develop a painting practice.

Another reason is that when your mind is focused on painting, you’re distracted from the daily issues plaguing you.

This level of joyful focus opens you up to receive insight and inspiration for your painting and sometimes even for your life.

My friend, Rebecca calls this phenomenon “epiphany city” — that’s how often it can occur!

Taking a class is a great way to start painting.

Classes both inform and give you permission to set aside time for yourself each week.

 You deserve a “time of your own!”

If you enjoy painting, consider creating a painting practice for yourself.

By deliberately setting aside time to paint once, twice, or more each week, you signal to yourself, and to others, that you deserve a joy-filled life.

By making yourself a priority, you increase self-care, paint more often, and your paintings improve more quickly.

 For best results, schedule your practice ahead of time.
Look at your calendar to decide the best days and times to paint.
If this week is full, look at next week.  

Get started in 15 minutes!

You don’t need a dedicated spot to paint.

Watercolor is easy to set up & fast to clean up.

 Try a few different time slots to see which ones feel best, then commit to this window a few days or weeks in advance.

 Until your practice is a consistent part of life, keep it short, sweet, and regular. 

In the beginning, even if you have the time to paint longer, stick to 15 minutes.

If you increase your painting time too quickly, one day you’ll decide you can’t fit it in. You’ll skip a day and maybe the next. Pretty soon you’ve lost your rhythm and the slippery slope to not painting is paved.

I’ve been there.

The more often you paint, the more rewards you reap.

Sometimes, my hand drifts from the color I’d intended to use to another color on the palette. Imagine my surprise when, instead of blue, I see orange or red show up on my painting.

The first time this happened, I flinched.

Now I figure my painting can benefit from the surprise and I find a way to work with it.

One day, your hand will spontaneously touch the paper towel, or choose a color.

If a hand can receive guidance, and if it can be accepted so easily, maybe you can receive guidance in other areas of life as well.

Maybe the more you trust, the more you can receive.

When you’re focused on painting, you are in a mindful moment.

That’s when inspiration flies in like a breeze, so quickly and lightly that you don’t always realize it’s happened.

In those moments of flow, your batteries are recharged, and your heart & mind are inspired to new levels.

By distracting the thinking part of your brain, you become the observer of all that’s before you and within you. 

In this way, you’re meditating with eyes wide open, allowing the flow of synchronistic happenings to form a new hologram for you to follow.

This is all part of your Inner Wisdom. It’s always here with you, ready to fill you with enthusiasm.

Be playful and light. Wisdom is patient and all-loving. Time is elastic and when you’re ready, your wisdom is here for you. 

While it might seem like a big jump to go from receiving painting inspiration to life inspiration, it’s not.  

Watercolor is a great, patient teacher.

What is needed in a painting can be reflected as what is needed in your daily life.

Does your painting need more dark colors to give it more depth? Or a bright color to add spice?

Does it need to rest before your next painting session?

How about you?

Do you need time for reflection, a rest from all that you’re doing, or maybe a change of pace or of perspective, a little more spice?

Painting is the reason I moved to Hawaii. Painting with Watercolor taught me how to trust the painting process.

I keep learning to trust life.

If watercolor can teach me, it can teach you too!